Arrow Casts Charlotte Ross As Felicity's Mother

Felicity Smoak's mother is gorgeous! We might have guessed as much just by looking at Felicity, but now we know for certain, as NYPD Blue's Charlotte Ross has been cast to play the mother of Oliver's brainy assistant.

TV Guide posted the news, stating that Ross -- whose credits include NYPD Blue, Glee and Nashville -- will play Felicity's mother in at least one episode of the third season of Arrow. We'll see her drop in around November. Her name has not yet been announced.

Here's where we get a little bit more spoilery about Season 3, so if you've heard enough about this casting news, now's the time to turn back!

Late last month, we spoke to the Arrow cast and writers about what's coming up in Season 3, and all signs point toward this being an interesting season for Felicity, not only because she and Oliver will have a date, or because Felicity will be the "one woman" in Oliver's life this season (that may or may not be a romantic situation), but also because we're going to learn a bit more about Emily Bett Rickards' character. Stephen Amell teased the possibility of Felicity getting her own centric episode in Season 3, and executive producer Marc Guggenheim told us that there would be a big Felicity flashback in Episode 5.

While TV Guide's article points out that we don't know if we'll be meeting Felicity's mother in the present day or a flashback, if Arrow Season 3 premieres in October then Episode 5 will most likely air in November, which means it's very possible that Charlotte Ross will appear in a flashback. Or both a flashback and the present day.

We don't know a whole lot about Felicity's background, but what she has revealed about her parent situation is that her mother is (or was) a cocktail waitress and her father left them both when she was little. We might jump to the theory that her dad is somehow linked to the DC-universe, but the fact that her mother's name has not been revealed has us inclined not to rule her out as someone linked to the comics in some way. Perhaps we'll find out in November when Ross makes her first appearance. In the meantime, Felicity fans have one more reason to look forward to Season 3!

Another reason to anticipate Season 3 is the arrival of the new villain Ra's al Ghul, who was teased in the extended preview for the third season, which you can watch after the jump...